Was it the puppet animation, the hilarious lineup of 2D animation characters brilliantly conceived from our traditional fare, or the release-ready 3D Animation comic caper from Vaibhav Studios, Mumbai that’s ready to send film audiences across the globe into peals of laughter?

Mr. Vaibhav Kumar of Vaibhav Studios, Mumbai graced the 25^th Anniversary celebrations of Creative Multimedia – the best animation institute in India as a special guest and delivered an enriching presentation on animation production.

Screening the TV channel Idents, Television commercials, and other animation work including the International Emmy award-winning Lamput Series, and pro-Bono films that his studio produced, he delivered an engaging master session on the behind-the-scenes of 2D animation films, focusing on the animatics for Simpoo, the animated angry math teacher and brand mascot of Channel V.

The Nickelodeon Idents and a film on depression were particularly engaging and drew loud applause from students. The miniature sets made with real material and designed to look realistic impressed the students as they erupted in applause. Particularly enriching were the frames involving shooting with puppets. It was a great learning experience for students of Creative Multimedia, many of whom are pursuing one of the best animation degree courses in India.

With the learning perspective in mind, and as a special gesture for the young animation enthusiasts, Mr. Vaibhav shared a confidential clip of his studio’s maiden feature-length 3D animation film ‘Return of the Jungle’. Brilliantly made with superlative production standards, every frame bore the stamp of quality with truly endearing characters and what seemed like an intensely engaging story. Students simply loved the preview and broke into thunderous applause as it ended.

Mr. Vaibhav was optimistic that ‘Return of the Jungle’ will herald an exciting era in the 3D animation space in India; a much-needed development for the animation industry to grow in the country. Stating that the film has been under production for many years now and that it is close to completion, Mr. Vaibhav was optimistic about a summer 2024 release.

Post his presentation, Mr. Vaibhav fielded questions from students on a range of matters related to animation production vis-à-vis short term and long term animation courses. He concluded with firm advice to students: “Put your money where your heart is”. Mr. Raja Sekhar offered his gratitude to Mr. Vaibhav with a token of appreciation and thanked him for travelling all the way from Mumbai to share his knowledge and experience with students.